Injuries for South Africa before final

Morne Morkel and JP Duminy will undergo late fitness tests ahead of Saturday’s triangular series final against Australia in Harare.

South Africa faces injury issues including Duminy’s (Left) ahead of the summit clash against Australia on Saturday. (Source: AP)

South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel and all-rounder JP Duminy will undergo late fitness tests ahead of Saturday’s triangular series final against Australia in Harare. South Africa, who have already lost all-rounder Ryan McLaren to injury in the series, will give the players until just before the start of play to prove their fitness.

“MRI Scans were done on Morne’s right shoulder and JP’s left knee earlier this week. Morne’s scan confirmed an aggravation of a pre-existing rotator cuff tear which has worsened due to a high workload in Zimbabwe, while JP’s scan confirmed a patella tendinopathy diagnosis,” Proteas team manager Mohammed Moosajee said in a statement. “ Due to the worsening nature of their injuries recently, their availability for the final will be subject to a late fitness test in the morning.”

The side may feel the loss of Duminy more as he performs not just as a top six batsman, but also provides a spin option on the Harare Sports Club wickets that have turned prodigiously recently.

Mind game

Story continues below this ad

Meanwhile, days after fracturing South Africa all rounder McLaren’s right arm, Australian quick has Mitchell Johnson ramped up the mind games after the Proteas saw off Zimbabwe to confirm their place in the final. Johnson claimed that Australia can easily forecast South Africa’s game plan, and suggested his own side are more versatile in the way that they go about their cricket. “They’re pretty structured in their ways,” he said. “They like to play a certain way and they do it most times. We’re ready to adapt to any conditions and we’ve done that in the past. We go out there and play our own game.”

There is some truth in Johnson’s assessment. Australia’s middle order is packed with power hitters such as Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh, who have twice seen them to scores above 325 in a tournament characterised by slow, dry pitches.South Africa’s batsman tend to be more orthodox as they rely on their inherent quality – as they did when AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis scored hundreds to chase a target of 328 in the first meeting between the two sides last week.

However, Australia’s own adaptability has not always been up to the mark – most notably when they failed to get the hang of a turning pitch on Sunday and lost to Zimbabwe for the first time in 31 years.

(AFP)

Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.